March 11, 2021 — American Aquafarms reported Wednesday that it had filed two draft lease applications for a closed-pen, Atlantic salmon farm in Frenchman Bay. The proposed two ocean sites, north of Bald Rock and The Hop islands, are in conjunction with the Portland-based company’s plan to buy East Coast Seafood Group’s seafood-processing facilities in Gouldsboro’s Prospect Harbor village. A fish hatchery would be built there as part of the project.
American Aquafarms’ March 3 submission of draft applications are part of the Maine Department of Marine Resources’ multi-step process for considering new aquaculture ventures. DMR has 30 days to determine if the applications meet its standards to proceed to a scoping session. If deemed complete, state authorities next would study the applications, conduct a site visit and hold a public hearing before issuing a final decision.
American Aquafarms CEO Mikael Roenes said the company’s project would result in hundreds of new jobs in the Downeast region. The 100-000-square-foot Maine Fair Trade facility and its wharf would become the base from which the fish farm’s barges and other craft would embark from to tend the Frenchman Bay ocean pens. The harvested fish would be processed on site. The existing warehouse would be converted into a hatchery for producing juvenile salmon and possibly cod to replenish harvested fish.
“Maine is the ideal location for this project,” Roenes said in a March 10 press release. “By leveraging the state’s deep water assets with next-generation, eco-friendly technology to sustainably produce food close to its market, we have the opportunity to set a new standard in the United States. Additionally, we are confident that Maine has the workforce we need to fill the year-round, good-paying jobs we’re creating.”